Best Cities for Occupational Therapy Assistantss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where occupational therapy assistantss get the most value from their salary after accounting for cost of living. A score above 1.00 means better than national average.

How we calculate this: City Score = (Local Salary ÷ National Median) ÷ (Local Cost ÷ National Avg Cost). A score of 1.20 means 20% better purchasing power than average.

#	Location	Score	Raw Salary	Adjusted Salary	Rent/Income
1	ArkansasState	1.27	$78,940	$91,472	13%
2	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.19	$79,240	$86,130	20%
3	TexasState	1.18	$81,500	$85,251	20%
4	New MexicoState	1.16	$77,020	$83,717	16%
5	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.16	$81,170	$83,508	23%
6	GeorgiaState	1.12	$75,920	$81,285	22%
7	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.12	$78,180	$80,764	25%
8	South CarolinaState	1.11	$73,740	$80,152	20%
9	NevadaState	1.10	$79,510	$79,351	22%
10	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.10	$95,370	$79,343	40%
11	DelawareState	1.08	$78,640	$77,861	21%
12	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.08	$82,620	$78,091	24%
13	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.08	$88,250	$78,236	27%
14	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.06	$71,050	$76,563	22%
15	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.05	$72,780	$75,971	25%
16	MarylandState	1.04	$82,010	$75,101	25%
17	MontanaState	1.04	$72,800	$75,519	19%
18	OklahomaState	1.04	$66,520	$75,164	17%
19	MissouriState	1.03	$66,070	$74,571	19%
20	OregonState	1.03	$76,850	$74,612	25%
21	CaliforniaState	1.02	$81,770	$73,866	33%
22	IndianaState	1.02	$66,660	$73,657	19%
23	KentuckyState	1.02	$65,230	$73,706	18%
24	North CarolinaState	1.02	$69,390	$73,506	22%
25	PennsylvaniaState	1.02	$71,590	$73,804	22%
26	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.02	$76,440	$73,855	25%
27	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.02	$72,820	$73,929	28%
28	ArizonaState	1.01	$73,490	$72,834	24%
29	LouisianaState	1.01	$66,090	$73,352	19%
30	MississippiState	1.01	$61,650	$72,700	17%
31	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.01	$78,640	$72,950	27%
32	KansasState	1.00	$65,010	$72,233	19%
33	VirginiaState	1.00	$74,960	$72,425	25%
34	WashingtonState	1.00	$77,590	$72,311	29%
35	AlabamaState	0.99	$62,250	$71,470	18%
36	ColoradoState	0.99	$75,340	$71,480	29%
37	IowaState	0.99	$64,140	$71,906	18%
38	West VirginiaState	0.99	$60,370	$71,698	17%
39	FloridaState	0.98	$71,630	$70,571	29%
40	MassachusettsState	0.96	$75,040	$69,161	36%
41	NebraskaState	0.96	$63,180	$69,049	20%
42	OhioState	0.96	$62,700	$69,358	20%
43	MichiganState	0.95	$63,260	$68,537	21%
44	New JerseyState	0.95	$74,960	$68,897	29%
45	ConnecticutState	0.94	$72,780	$67,639	26%
46	IdahoState	0.94	$65,330	$67,699	22%
47	TennesseeState	0.94	$62,420	$68,219	24%
48	Columbus, OHMetro	0.94	$63,480	$67,893	24%
49	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.94	$65,380	$67,963	29%
50	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.94	$77,590	$67,883	34%
51	WyomingState	0.93	$62,750	$67,473	19%
52	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.93	$78,090	$67,030	35%
53	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.93	$61,900	$66,919	23%
54	MinnesotaState	0.92	$64,920	$66,245	24%
55	Rhode IslandState	0.92	$66,710	$66,378	27%
56	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.92	$75,300	$66,344	41%
57	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.92	$60,900	$66,776	24%
58	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.92	$66,210	$66,543	27%
59	HawaiiState	0.91	$72,710	$66,100	39%
60	IllinoisState	0.91	$64,120	$65,832	25%
61	North DakotaState	0.91	$60,970	$65,842	19%
62	UtahState	0.91	$66,080	$65,948	27%
63	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.91	$71,310	$65,724	34%
64	WisconsinState	0.90	$59,960	$64,962	22%
65	MaineState	0.89	$64,270	$64,399	24%
66	New HampshireState	0.88	$67,790	$63,953	28%
67	South DakotaState	0.86	$56,180	$61,872	20%
68	New YorkState	0.84	$68,530	$60,916	32%
69	District of ColumbiaState	0.80	$66,390	$58,084	38%
70	AlaskaState	0.71	$53,530	$51,323	31%

Data Sources: Salary: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS). Cost of Living: BEA Regional Price Parities (2024). Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2025).